Foreward

I remember when this book was called “Dead Weed” (terrible title, but it grew on me, I actually like it a lot now, but oh well), and Josh Wagner hadn’t yet put his stamp on the comics world with FICTION CLEMENS, SKY PIRATES OF NEO-TERRA, OUTLAW TERRITORY, and I think a few other scatterings here and there. I befriended Josh because I read FICTION CLEMENS, and then I read some of his prose work. He, in turn, sweetheart that he is, read some of mine.

Instant karma.

We discovered we were both crotchety-yet-passionate hacks with pie-in-the-sky ideas about literature and its boundaries, about what made a good comic, about what made a good book. Let me tell you: it’s hard to impress a wannabe struggling writer if you’re also one yourself. Competition is fierce, and usually when some other jerk hands you something they’ve written you just knee-jerk know that your stuff is better than whatever it is you’re reading by this other guy. Only something that can swiftly and irrevocably penetrate this ego-armor will get through. Only something undeniably, outrageously, calculatingly, gravitas-ly, magically, oh shit I suck this is good-ly performed on paper, can quash the cynic in a self-proclaimed writer.

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Deadwind Sea.

This is a book I read on my computer in too-tiny Mac-formatted font and with that headache-inducing glare that computer screens generate. If I could adore the book via that, I can only imagine how much fun you’re going to have reading this on paper. The story falls somewhere between The Princess Bride and The Adventures of Baron Munchausen, with a dash of Flatland thrown in for good measure. And all wrapped in a narrative voice unique to Josh and Josh alone. This is part fable, part novel, part metaphysical reverie, totally accessible. Trust me, I hate the “Ooo, look, it’s multi-layered it’s deep you won’t understand it because I can’t be bothered to really write a plot” type of “original” work. This is a story, first and foremost, and a durn tootin’ good one.

But don’t take my word for it, take these checklists’:

THINGS YOU LIKE
• A complexly layered plot
• Prose both heavy and light, a balance of pulpy and poetic to where one does not detract from the other.
• Things you’ve never thought of before. Things you would never think of to write.
• Humor that constantly catches you off guard.
• Characters endearing no matter good, evil, or something more real.
• A PERFECT ENDING.

THINGS YOU RUE
• Elements of plot, character, or setting that smack of being “cool” or “neat” or “mind-blowing” without purpose or obvious use to the plot, characters, or setting.
• Semi-formed or surface-level philosophy or meta-anything that are not explored or satisfactorily meshed with the story on a foundational level.
• “Quirktastic” eccentricities replacing actual character development
• Retellings, remakes, re-hashed stories with a single or too-few new element(s) added.

So, if those lists generally align with your interests, I gotta tell you: Deadwind Sea is the epitome of List #1. Even better, it playfully walks the fine line, often incorporating much of the “RUE” list but forever tying them down and showing us all how it’s really done.
The original idea was for this book to be an illustrated monster, with more art by fan-favorite comics guys than you could shake a longbox at. But even in its present state, as a pure prose novel, you won’t need the visual accompaniment. Deadwind Sea is a smorgasbord of visual stimulation shaped by Wagner’s wonderful words.

Life may have taken me in the direction of the publisher in recent years, rather than writer, but I’m still hip deep in the culture and art form, and still as persnickety as ever about what can be considered a good book. Deadwind Sea is, in my opinion, a fabulous book that should not be missed by a single soul. If you disagree, I dare you to write something better. Then send it to Josh. He’ll probably love feeling about your book the way I feel about his.

Dave Baxter

Deputy Director, Robot Comics
Publisher, Killing the Grizzly Comics
Writer of things hopefully to be read by the masses in the near future. Until then, just read this.